PROSECUTORS have published pictures of some of the items which former SNP chief executive Peter Murrell bought with embezzled money – including images of the now-notorious motorhome.
The publication from the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) came on Tuesday morning as Murrell appeared in court for a hearing to outline the facts of the case against him.
On Monday, May 25, the former SNP executive had pleaded guilty to embezzling £400,000 from the party from 2010 to 2022.
On Tuesday, June 2, COPFS provided a "narrative" of the case, outlining the facts the prosecution says Murrell had admitted with the plea.
Alongside the narrative, the prosecution service also published five images of items the former SNP chief had bought with embezzled funds, including a wine coaster, a robotic lawnmower, and a £124,550 Niesmann+Bischoff motorhome.
Here are the five images which the COPFS has published.
The motorhome
When police seized the vehicle from Murrell's mother’s house, the odometer showed it had only been driven for four miles.
It was described as a “van rather than a motorhome” when the invoice was filed.
The court was told: “It was never used or seen by any other party member or employee.”
The motorhome interior
A wine coaster
A robotic lawnmower
The case against Peter Murrell
On Tuesday, the High Court in Edinburgh heard the former SNP chief executive had embezzled £400,310.65 from the party's principal bank account, “over which he had control”.
Alan Cameron KC said the funds in that account came mainly from “membership fees and donations paid by party members and other donors and legacies”.
He said Murrell falsified accounting records and created fake invoices in a bid to cover up his wrongdoing as he racked up purchases that included the motorhome and thousands of pounds of luxury stationery.
Cameron told the court one of the vehicles included a Volkswagen Golf car, which was later sold and the proceeds used towards buying a Jaguar I-Pace worth more than £81,000.
The advocate depute said a false invoice was created for this, submitting the claim as “stage payment”.
Cameron said: “He claimed that the payment was for staging for national events.”
Sentencing of the 61-year-old, who is former first minister Nicola Sturgeon’s estranged husband, is due to take place later in June.
Sturgeon has denied knowing of his crimes, saying she was “deceived, misled and betrayed”.
